Ain't this a great photo...? It was made in a cave in France (discovered in 1994), and through the use of carbon dating it was established that it was made around 32.000 years ago!

NOTICE: This hand print became also known as 'the earliest portrait of man'! (according this source: http://www.cs.clemson.edu/~juan/HCCL/about.htm)

I have written a impression about how the use of hand prints evolved in time among various cultures around the world:http://palmreadingperspectives.wordpress.com/2011/06/06/the-oldest-portrait-of-man-is-a-32-000-years-old-hand-print/

(Including a short summary about how the history of palmistry can be positioned in the perspective of this ancient palm print!)

... If you have anything to add to this story about likewise ancient rituals related to hands & early palm reading, you are very welcome to share it!

Last edited by Martijn (admin) on Mon Jun 06, 2011 8:18 pm; edited 1 time in total

But it is interesting to see that researchers have associated these hand prints with "places of prayer and magical ceremonies" and "the hands must have seemed not only mystical, but also symbolic of the entire human being" (quoted from my blog post).

Of course, this is only speculation. But assuming that these speculation approach the truth, it does provide a clue how hands were perceived in the minds of people during those days.

Has anyone ever heard of basic palm reading being done on such an ancient print, taking in consideration the overall hand shape and length of fingers, and spacing?From a scientific point of view, is there anything that can be presumed as well?

Bwana wrote:Has anyone ever heard of basic palm reading being done on such an ancient print, taking in consideration the overall hand shape and length of fingers, and spacing?From a scientific point of view, is there anything that can be presumed as well?

I think it's fascinating to study and compare primitive or ancient hands to ours.

Check out this link, not nearly as ancient, but scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the image - it's worth the wait for it to load! You can view each of the hands close-up!

Evanescent Light : Anasazi Ruins

Ian Parker (Ph.D., FRS, Professor)

I found this accidentally and coincidentally. I was researching a few weeks ago how cells communicate to each other. This link came up. I got so caught up in looking at the photography that I forgot how and why I was on that page! Then at the bottom I clicked on the photographer's links and this same person is a scientist involved in studies about cell signalling! Impressive!

Scribbler wrote:The hand on the picture seems to hand a large index finger, sign of management skills, dominance. I bet it's the handprint of a leader of the tribe ;-)Of course, there's no way to check...

Interesting observation, but leaders usually do not have a long index finger... because various 2D:4D studies have pointed leaders are more likely to have low 2D:4D digit ratio, which implicates a relatively short index finger (compared to the ring finger).

Coincidently, a few weeks ago a new report has been presented pointing out that the handprints inside the French & Spanish caves are most likely female hands:

Were the First Artists Mostly Women?

These hand stencils found in the El Castillo cave in Cantabria, Spain, were probably made by a man (left) and a woman (right), respectively.